Market Basket: Kirkland's might be Mishawaka bound

Kirkland's, a national retailer specializing in home decor, appears to be returning to Mishawaka.

But the store is not planning to move back into the mall. Instead, Kirkland's will be opening inside an older Grape Road strip center.

Construction is tentatively scheduled to start in early September at Indian Ridge Plaza, according to a request for bids on the upcoming commercial project.

Cleveland-based Chase Properties owns both Indian Ridge and Wilshire plazas, located on the northeast and southeast corners of Grape and Indian Ridge Boulevard.

Indian Ridge Plaza contains more than 20 tenants in the main center and a multi-tenant building, including Bed, Bath & Beyond, hhgregg, Hacienda and T.J.Maxx.

Kirkland's apparently will open in the former Fashion Bug space. (Fashion Bug recently closed this location, and it is closing all stores by early 2013.) It will be located between Disc Replay and Village Bazaar Value Stores.

From 1996 to 2007, Kirkland's operated inside University Park Mall.

Rob Horn, owner of Village Bazaar, is anxious to welcome his new neighbor; many area shoppers will be excited about its return.

"We feed off each other's traffic -- for us especially, when it is Kirkland's. They specialize in mid-priced decor, which T.J. Maxx offers as well as us in a small way," Horn says.

"The more offerings that are available in one center, the more everyone ends up with more traffic because of it. I am extremely happy to see that the space did not sit empty long," he says.

The entire Fashion Bug space is more than 10,000 square feet. In comparison, United Art & Education occupies about 18,000 square feet in an adjacent storefront.

We'll pass along more information as it is available from officials at the Jackson, Tenn.-based Kirkland's corporate offices.

Mall updates

The much-anticipated new J. Crew store is scheduled to open Wednesday at University Park Mall in Mishawaka, says Irene McKiernan, the mall's director of marketing.

2b bebe is now under construction in the former Abercrombie Kids storefront just off the food court. That 4,200-square-food store should open in early September, McKiernan says.

The new Jamba Juice will be located in a kiosk near Auntie Anne's Pretzels, as opposed to a traditional storefront. Jamba is planning an August opening, McKiernan says.

Have you heard?

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Heidi Prescott's column runs on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. When she's not shopping, contact her at hprescott@sbtinfo.com or 574-235-6070. You can also talk retail at Facebook.com/thebasket and at Twitter.com/marketbasket.